Preview your godaddy website before a domain transfer

We often build a clients site on a hosting account where the domain name hasn’t been transferred or the DNS has been pointed to the new hosting. A common way to solve this issue is to modify your host file on your local machine.

Depending on your Operating System will determine where your local host file will be. Open the file in a common text editor like notepad. The following link helped my find my host file.

Add a line so there is no “#” before your next entry. Add the IP address and the fully qualified domain name.

To get the IP of your new host it can often be found in the CPanel. In Godaddy it is currently on the left side, down at the bottom under server information.

After you save the host file you will be able to use a browser and go to the domain name and you will get to the new hosting to preview your site. You may need to wait a few minutes. You may need to clear your cashe or hit refresh.